He soars through Central Park, his flight path twisting and turning to the delight of passersby, his satin cape shimmering and  red hair ablaze in the early afternoon sun.

My son, Liam, and I sometimes get cooped up at home for far too long. Liam is on the spectrum for autism, and although he’ll have a typical childhood and go to typical schools, it will be because he was diagnosed early and received the care and therapy he needs. Four weekdays out of five, he either has therapists visit in the afternoon or must be taken to an appointment. Another therapist spends time with him at his pre-school every morning.

In short, my son puts in a lot of work every week. His only afternoon off is Wednesday so we always try to make the most of it. Liam’s favorite thing to do is to run, to fly, and Central Park is the best place in the world for that.

His magical world in Central Park

Our route through the park is long and winding. We usually enter at Columbus Circle, head east to the Central Park Zoo, and then turn north. We will go past the sailboats of Kerbs Boathouse, the Alice in Wonderland sculpture, all the way up to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Then we cut across the park to Belvedere Castle, and wind our way through the wooded pathways to the Bethesda Fountain. From there, we go to the bandshell, down the promenade, and hook right past the Carousel and baseball diamonds, to Heckscher Playground. There, Liam will run and play for an hour or so before we head back home.

Liam runs ahead of me the entire time, through his magical world of Central Park.

There’s a man who regularly plays the fiddle by the Heckscher Playground. He knows Liam by name, although he always calls him Batman, or Flash, or whichever identity he has chosen that day. Liam squeals in response, and the fiddler plays music for him to dance to.

My son’s imagination saves the day

Autism has not affected my son’s mental or cognitive faculties. He is as sharp as a tack, remembers everything and misses nothing. But one issue he had was with imaginative play. He was prone to lying on the floor, simply rolling a car or train back and forth in front of his eyes, fixated on its wheels, unwilling to expand his world out from his toy vehicle.

One of Liam’s therapists, Diane, found the key to coaxing him away from this laser focus on toy cars and trains. He would always get very excited when he heard a garbage truck outside, and would run to the window to see it. One morning, Diane pointed out the sanitation workers loading the truck. Liam simply had not registered them. He would only see the vehicles, not the people inside them.

This was partly our fault. His favorite television program was Thomas the Tank Engine, and he would watch some of Disney’s Cars every day. Both shows featured anthropomorphic vehicles and little to no human interaction. My wife and I had been unintentionally reinforcing his tendency to lock in on vehicles and ignore the humans operating them.

I’d been buying superhero toys and clothes for Liam since he first arrived. I make no apologies for being an unabashed nerd. It’s a big part of who I am. But when faced with the question of how to help Liam incorporate people into his play routines, and to help him branch out into role-playing and other types of imaginative play, I found the answer in superheroes.

Superheroes are big and bold, bursting with color, and impossible to ignore. Many of the toys come as vehicles and playsets. Now he would be required to deal with human characters when he played with vehicles. Capes, masks, accessories and clothing were easy to find, and encouraged imaginative roleplay.

Superheroes drew my son into more typical and varied realms of play. Once he saw how a cape flew out behind him when he ran, he became hooked. Now he would not only run, he would fly. His imagination would kick into overdrive.

He was no longer Liam, he was a superhero.

Watching people react to Liam as he dashes by has become one of my greatest pleasures. He actually lights people up. They smile. They laugh. They will try to take a picture of him, but he’s too fast. Their cameras only catch a brightly colored blur streaking away from them, but his picture stays in their mind, like the image of the sun does after you glance at it.

Walking next to my son is like walking next to the sun.

A dynamic duo

Liam isn’t the only one to dress up, of course. I’m all too eager to don a super suit as I follow him through Central Park. Liam chooses which superhero he wants to be, and then picks one for me. The end result is I add an extra kick to the sunny impact he has on people. Those folks already smiling about the pint-sized Batman who just ran past tend to break into even wider grins when they see an enormous Robin bringing up the rear with the stroller.

Dressing up as a superhero with my son has unintentionally practical benefits, too. Liam is more difficult to lose in a crowd, being an easily spotted explosion of color and energy in playgrounds swarming with kids. Conversely, my costume makes it easy for him to find me. Without planning it, our superhero outfits have become safety features, ensuring that we will never lose each other.

The superhero outfits, surprisingly, have also made me more approachable. Like a lot of dads on a playground full of moms, I’ve felt out of place at times, like an intruder. Granted, this feeling subsides (mostly because it isn’t really true) but that sense that I’m unwelcome, that I’m viewed with suspicion because I’m a man, comes back from time to time.

That all goes away when you’re wearing a Green Lantern outfit and your little Superman is directing you where to go to stop the next fiendish threat to the planet. It’s difficult to be perceived as a threat to anyone when you’re saving the world. You are immediately considered a safe space by all, and parents and children alike will come over and talk to you.

Making friends as a grown-up can be unnecessarily difficult, and a superhero shirt can circumvent that.When you’re focusing on what’s fun for your kid, you’re not worried about how others might be seeing you, and that’s the key to improving playground time for your child and you.

It’s seems weirdly ironic to not worry about how others see you when you’re wearing a Batman mask, but there it is. Superhero outfits can make you less self conscious while simultaneously making you more conspicuous. Funny, that.

So while I originally intended for superheroes to help Liam work through his issues, they’ve also ended up helping me with mine. But the secret here is not the costume but the time we’re spending together. Superheroes may be the conduit for that, and they can be switched out for anything else. Use whatever you are into — sports, music, bottle caps — as a starting point to find what your child really likes and how you can encourage him or her. That’s kind of a big part of what parenting is all about.

The point is, you don’t need to use superheroes, and you don’t need to be in Central Park. You can do this anywhere, with anything.

From Dynamic Duo to Justice League

It’s time for the play-date now. Liam’s preschool friends frequent Central Park as well, and we meet either on the Great Lawn or one of the playgrounds most every Wednesday. It’s a recent development, but a welcome one. The other kids all make sure to let me know they want capes, too. No problem. We have enough.

So we’ve gone from a Dynamic Duo to a full-on Justice League. Batman and Captain America team up with Wonder Woman and Paw Patrol Boy, or whomever else the children dream up. Now, whenever you visit Central Park on Wednesdays, you must keep an eye out for lots of low flying superheroes.

A little over a year ago, Liam was still barely speaking. He still had a tendency to withdraw into himself, and was slow to socialize with other children. To see him now, leading the Avengers in a charge across the Great Lawn seems nothing short of miraculous. Which is the kind of thing superheroes do, I suppose.

He soars through Central Park, his flight path twisting and turning to the delight of passersby, his satin cape shimmering, and the golden late afternoon sun setting his red hair ablaze, like a joyful fire.

My heart burns there, too.

“You will travel far, my little Kal-El, but we will never leave you, even in the face of our death. The richness of our lives shall be yours. All that I have, all that I’ve learned, everything I feel, all this and more, I bequeath you, my son. You will carry me inside you, all the days of your life.

You will make my strength your own, and see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine.” ~ Marlon Brando/Jor-El in Superman: the Movie

EDITOR’S NOTE: NYC kids’ winter activities recommendations updated for Winter 2022-23!!

These are the times that try a parent’s soul — the cold, barren doldrums of winter between the New Year’s holiday and the start of spring (yeah – that’s pretty much all of winter, people). How can you keep your child entertained?

We compiled a list of several kids’ winter activities you can find around the boroughs to help you exercise your child’s body and brain.

You can also check out our friends at New York Family magazine for updated lists of seasonal events and great suggestions for other things for you and your little ones to do in the city.

Best kids’ winter activities in NYC: Skating

Let the tourists take over Rockefeller Center. Instead, start your quest for ice time by checking out NYC’s public skating rinks. Then, see what our friends at Tiny Beans recommend for skating in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. Personally, we like:

Lakeside Prospect Park. This recently renovated Brooklyn skating rink features an outdoor and an indoor rink so you can have fun no matter the weather. Don’t forget to stop in at the cafe for hot chocolate.

The Rink at Winter Village in Bryant Park. This great Manhattan location always has fun going on in its Winter Village setting. Skating is free if you bring your own skates, but you do need to reserve a time. Features to rent include special penguin “Skate Aids” to rent that will help beginners under age 10 navigate, ice “bumper cars,” curling lanes and even dining igloos.

City Ice Pavilion. Hop over to Queens for this huge skating facility in Long Island City that features two NHL-size rinks. Note: helmets for novice skaters are no longer available for rental.

Best kids’ winter activities in NYC: Learning

Not all kids’ winter activities have to involve the cold. Winter is the best time to take your children to any of the scores of great historic places or museums New York City has to offer because … fewer tourists! Time Out New York Kids offers a great list of permanent kids’ exhibits at local museums. Here are some of our faves:

MOMA: The Museum of Modern Art. The “Art Card” program is part scavenger hunt and part-art history lesson that will teach and entertain your children. Also features story-time events, art classes and more for the wee ones.

The Queens Museum. Home for the most amazing scale model ever built (of New York City, of course, this recently renovated museum in Flushing is also a showcase for many contemporary and modern artists. It also holds many family workshops on Sundays.

National Museum of the American Indian. Located in lower Manhattan inside the Alexander Hamilton Customs House, which is a beautiful feat of turn-of-the-20th-century architecture, this museum teaches about Native American history and culture while also featuring special activities just for kids.

The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum’s Exploreum Hall. This 13,000 square feet of interactive exhibits is just part of this awesome complex. It offers family-friendly workshops and storytelling activities year-round. You can even sleep onboard overnight through its “Operation Slumber.”

Best kids’ winter activities in NYC: Sledding

The city’s Parks Department website actually lists popular sledding spots in all five NYC boroughs (yes, Staten Island, too). Here are some of our faves:

Central Park: Pilgrim Hill and Cedar Hill. Pilgrim Hill, accessible at 72nd Street and Fifth Avenue, has steeper hills and tends to get more crowded. Cedar Hill, between 76th and 79th streets on the east side, has two hills, one of which is less steep and thus more popular with the youngest sledders.

Inwood Hill Park. Its location at the tip of Upper Manhattan means it’s less crowded than most NYC sledding spots, but man — it’s worth the trip there with lots of space and slopes to hit.

Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn. Features four hills of varying difficulty so there’s something for all riders.

You can find other sledding recommendations from Time Out New York Kids and our friends at Mommy Poppins.

Indoor play in NYC

Let the kids burn off some energy at one of these NYC indoor play spaces recommended by Tiny Beans. 

Bonus: Hit the ski, tubing slopes

New York City may not have mountains but the city is closer to the ski and tubing action than you may think.

We wrote a whole separate post about the best family-friendly skiing and tubing near NYC. Check it out!

Top photo by cottonbro via Pexels

Autumn is one of the most beautiful and serene times of year to visit Central Park. The leaves light up our senses with their splash of insane colors. That makes it the perfect time to roundup a crew of father-friends from NYC Dads Group and plan a scenic stroll past some our favorite New York City landmarks.

We recently hooked up with one of our favorite children’s gear brands, Britax, to transport our children comfortably and safely in their modern, colorful and versatile new Britax B-Ready Strollers. Central Park has a wide range of rugged terrain and the B-Ready Stroller adapted gracefully to the gravel, tree roots and steep hills.

We mapped an invigorating walk with our little ones through Central Park. Fueled up on caffeine, we then assembled at The Plaza Hotel in the southeast corner, meandered through “the Mall” that’s featured in hundreds of movies, around Bethesda Fountain and The Loeb Boathouse, hugged the property of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and finished at popular Ancient Playground so our children can burn up energy as we enjoyed lunch under the glowing sun. Most organized activities at the park are suspended during the autumn work week which made our Britax B-Ready Stroller experience feel private — like we had Central Park all to ourselves.

We wanted to share some highlights of the experience with other families through a photo walk (see below) in the hope of inspiring more parents to bundle up and hit a local park for a scenic stroll this autumn.  Special thanks to talented photographer, NYC Dads Group member, and friend, Nick Lioi (and his lovely wife) for the stellar photos.

Dads, Start Your Britax B-Ready Strollers!

DISCLOSURE: NYC Dads Group have an ongoing relationship with Britax/BOB. It includes a variety of activities, workshops and experiences for which we are compensated. We’re proud to work with brands that make products and provide services that we believe in and use ourselves.

New York City has some of the best parks in the world and in those parks are world-class playgrounds. One of those is the Billy Johnson Playground in Central Park (enter near West 66th Street).

Like many of the playgrounds in Central Park, Billy Johnson Playground is made mostly of older-looking stone and wood. It is designed to blend into the natural beauty of the park.

When you walk into this playground, you’ll think it is something out of a storybook. You are greeted by an ivy-covered wooden entrance that opens up into a desert of sand on one side and a stone bridge that looks down on a small fountain, which is more suited as a drinking spot for small birds than anything else.

At first look, you’ll think you see a ton of litter lying about as large swatches of cardboard are everywhere. But that’s part of best feature of Billy Johnson Playground — an amazing winding, stone slide. On its own, the slide is a great ride, but if you grab one of the pieces of cardboard it’s transformed into a super-fast carnival thrill. Everyone goes down once then immediately goes right back to its log staircase to climb up for another ride.

Billy Johnson Playground is somewhat simple and definitely not what you think of when you think of the heart of Manhattan. It’s more like the heart of the shire.

Overheard at the park: “As your childhood gets closer to ending you need to get dirtier.”

• Water feature: Yes
• Sand: Yes
• Shade: Ample
• Bathroom: No

A version of this first appeared on Great Moments in Bad Parenting.

In the NYC Dads Group’s short eight-year life, we’ve hosted more than 1,500 different gatherings around the tri-state area. We continue to grow and evolve, but some special traditions remain intact, including the annual NYC Dads Group Pre-Father’s Day Family Picnic.

NYC Dads Group members, their spouses, partners and offspring gathered for our seventh annual family picnic on Saturday, June 11, 2016, in Central Park.  The picnic is always one of our largest and most successful events, bringing together the entire family in honor of the approaching Father’s Day holiday.  Attendance this year reached a staggering 150 people! Families socialized, laughed together, played ball with each other, and relaxed on a beautiful New York City afternoon.

This year’s annual Pre-Father’s Day Family Picnic had a special element — boxed picnic lunches and treats courtesy of sponsor Dove Men+Care.  This Father’s Day, Dove Men+Care is celebrating how dads’ caring side elevates him to hero status in the eyes of his children.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gTkjySp4gI]

These types of caring dads were front and center at our annual picnic. The best way to highlight these real dads — our NYC Dads Group members — showing moments of care as a sign of real strength was through photos.  You’ll observe that we don’t need to be caped crusaders to show our “super powers” of nurturer, baby soother, cozy pillow for napper, hair braider, adventuruer, jump rope holder, or being there to pick up our children when they fall.  Special thanks to our friend, group member and resident photographer Nick Lioi for taking these great shots and letting us publish them.

NYC Dads Group Pre-Father’s Day Picnic 2016

DISCLOSURE: While the Father’s Day picnic may have been sponsored by Dove Men+Care, the photos and our wonderful memories are real. Get out there and be a superhero to your kids, dad.

We are the new normal!  So don’t gawk at us like we’re an exhibit at the zoo. We’re just a pack of dads getting together regularly with our children all over New York City almost every day of the week. Last week, a pack of fifteen members from our NYC DADS “dudes” GROUP were at the Central Park Zoo on a Wednesday morning with our kids sporting our brand spanking new Britax B-Ready Strollers. Special thanks to Britax for sponsoring this amazing outing and providing the sleek, durable, and smooth rides for all of the fathers involved. If you’ve seen the film, What To Expect When You’re Expecting, we were told by several tourists & parents at the zoo that day, that we reminded them of the “dudes group” from the movie…only without the star power of Chris Rock.

The morning was filled with our crew of active dads strolling over to the Penguin feeding, observing the monkeys, parading through the rain forest, catching the Sea Lion show, and carving out quality time for snacks, good conversations, and chasing after our children.  Then, some of us got to kick back and relax for a while as many of our children napped in their new wheels.  For me, the dads’ group experience is always about the camaraderie, bonding, and sharing of stories with other dads.  It’s nice to hear advice, best practices, and constructive feedback from other fathers to assist in helping me be the best dad I can be. Additionally, it’s a wonderful opportunity for dads with small babies to speak with “veteran dads” to help navigate parenthood. 

Our dads that attended the event had a lot of feedback about spending time and meeting new dad friends as well as discussing their Britax B-Ready Strollers which can be reviewed here. But, to really get an idea of what our experience was like, we’ve got some pics to share. Let us know what you think.

On Saturday, about 20 dads with their wives and children met in the morning by the Great Lawn for our 2nd Annual NYC Dads Group pre-Father’s Day playdate in the park.

What makes a day like this so special is that not only do I get to hang out with some wonderful dads, but I also get to meet the other half of the parenting equation in their family … which is such a rarity since most of our events are exclusively for dads.  The weather was perfect!  With blankets chained together under the canopy of shady trees (see pic by Scott H.), our children socialized, played ball, and worked on their sharing skills.  Most parents got to relax, unwind, and enjoy themselves.  Well, almost all of the parents.  Unfortunately, my son thought it was much cooler to race off outside of the fenced-in area rather than staying put so my wife & I can finish a conversation – he is 3 … so it’s par for the course. 

Either way, it was an awesome way to enjoy the ride of parenthood with so many other committed, caring, and involved parents.  A chance to spend time with dads I have known for almost three years as well as welcome some new dads within our growing community.  A few of the working dads that participated today had requested more activities like this on the weekends because they are unable to attend our events during the week.  A good point and something we hope to expand on in the future.

Most surprisingly, was my wife’s feelings about the entire event.  She is the career-oriented breadwinner of our family while I am primarily the at-home dad as the primary caregiver to our son.  She said that this type of event where she is able to talk shop with other working moms who are also the breadwinner of their families was a real treat for her.  Makes me think that other breadwinning moms are probably seeking camaraderie, socialization, and support in their unique roles.  My wife has suggested in the past setting up a mom’s night or parents’ night out so she can engage in more conversations with parents in a similar situation as our family.  Even more important for her, is to get to know the mothers of the dads that I have grown so close with over the years within our community. There are so many resources for stay-at-home moms but, what about the breadwinning moms? It certainly is a growing trend.

This week’s “guest” blog entry is from a newbie group member, Loren.  Below, Loren captivates our interest in describing the scene at The Music Garden children’s class in Central Park.  You can tell by reading his review that this father puts his child first and finds some camaraderie along the way:

On a beautiful and hot summer morning, a group of Dads and their little counterparts from all corners of the island, met in a shaded area of Central Park for a music class…and to swap their latest adventures of Daddyhood in New York City.

When the show began my 10-month old son, Jonah’s attention was captured from the moment he laid eyes on Madeline, the performer and creator of The Music Garden. The Music Garden is a cornucopia of music, dance and delights for the senses. I have to be honest, I found the performance to be a bit strange, but then I had to remind myself it wasn’t for me (see picture by Adam J. of the engaged kids). This is something I’m learning is a theme of parenthood. I thought the accordion was an interesting choice of instrument. Sort of melancholy for children’s songs, but I am happy that Jonah was getting exposed to different sounds and forms of music. We were getting tired of the guitar jams of all the class we normally go to anyway!

What I did appreciate was Madeline’s makeshift instruments. A Tupperware container filled with dried pasta and wrapped with brown paper topped by a rubber band is very different from the shiny plastic shakers we are used to. It was refreshing to see that my baby can learn to make music out of anything!

One of the highlights for Jonah and I was The Music Garden’s location. Madeline teaches her classes in a beautiful area of the park right next to an excellent playground where there is something for every age group to enjoy. After the class Dads with little ones in tow headed over to the playground to continue our fun and had an opportunity to talk amongst ourselves.
I have to say, my wife always goes on and on about her Mommy group and how much it has enriched her first-time-parent experience. Well finding this group of Dads has done the same for me. Just in a much more manly way! We look forward to our next event and seeing all our new friends again soon!

*The Music Garden is unique in that it is a drop-in class so it does not require a weekly commitment.  This seems to be something that Dads tend to prefer.  The cost of their classes are only $10 and you can find out the calendar of all upcoming classes here.

Sometimes it’s nice to be a tourist in your own city. Sometimes it’s nice to drop your child off with family so you and your wife can have some alone time. This past Saturday, I was fortunate to have both.

We live close to Central Park, and as an at home dad, it becomes my oasis several times a week – for it’s plentiful playgrounds, fields of grass for my son & I to run around or play ball on, serene landscapes, and the like. My working wife only knows Central Park for it’s overcrowded hot spots: The Great Lawn, Sheep’s Meadow, and the Zoo. I asked her how she wanted to spend our beautiful, private afternoon together without our son. She excitedly replied, “take me for a tour of Central Park.” Fortunately, I was armed with a useful tool because my buddy Matt sent me this article a few weeks ago: Hidden NY: 19 Fun Things to Do in Central Park Beyond the Zoo from family-friendly Mommy Poppins.

We started on the North East corner of Central Park. We strolled through the tranquil and symmetrical Conservatory Gardens, meandered around the Harlem Meer (where they rent free fishing equipment), and traversed through the North Woods filled with streams and waterfalls. One thing was for sure – it did not feel like New York City. After navigating The Great Hill and parking ourselves on the banks of the boathouse lagoon listening to the folk tunes of That Guitar Man from Central Park, we had the makings of a perfect date.

I share this (not to sound corny, but I know it does anyway) because sometimes the most simple and least expensive way is the best way to have the perfect date! And to hype up what an amazing and diverse place Central Park truly is. Although, I know so many other treasures exist throughout the five boroughs of New York City.

Speaking of Central Park, our friends at the Baby Buggy charity are hosting their fourth annual fundraising event TODAY: Baby Buggy Bedtime Bash in Central Park…

This is a family fundraiser that they do once a year at Victorian Gardens in Central Park. If you are ever going to experience the amusement park over the summer come to this private, fun event where there are NO lines and everyone wins a prize!

Who: Baby Buggy
What: A Family Fun Party For Kids of All Ages
When: Thursday, June 3, 4:30 – 7:30pm – rain or shine
Where: Victorian Gardens (Amusement Park) at Wollman Rink in Central Park
Cost: This is a charitable donation and different packages are available, but site states single adult tickets are $175 & individual children are $75.
For more information, visit their website or call 212-736-1772

Read about our group’s volunteer experience with this fantastic charity.

This “guest blog” entry was completed by NYC Dads Group member Robert J. I have a challenging time juggling all of the responsibilities that comes with being the primary caregiver to one child. Robert is fortunate to be an at-home dad with twins.

Today we “Jammed with Joanie Leeds” in Central Park. Eighteen dads and their kids came to the Great Lawn to meet our guest musician. Joanie was a great guest for the group because she was so personable and talented. She made a point to introduce herself to all the dads and kids before the event started and kept us engaged for forty-five minutes. After a welcome song to introduce the kids, she combined some classic songs we all knew with some of her original songs. We sang songs like Old MacDonald, the Hokey Pokey, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star among others. She also sang some of her original songs including Ice Cream and Blast Off. I am sure it was fun to be a passerby and see eighteen dads throwing their babies into the air with the Blast Off song! She concluded her jam session with bubbles, parachute time, and a few extra tunes.

Her never-ending bags of goodies and high energy kept the kids and dads entertained. Her props included maracas as ice cream cones, farm animal puppets for Old MacDonald, scarves for the Hokey Pokey, and bubbles. My kids preferred to eat and gnaw on the props, but some of the older kids had a better idea of what to do with them. Joanie had a knack for getting the dads up and moving too!

I don’t think we can beat live music under the trees in Central Park to start off the week. Overall, it was clear to me that Joanie knew what she was doing, was well-prepared, flexible, and talented; all things that are very much appreciated by a dad like me! There were lots of onlookers & tourists gawking at us with big smiles & taking multiple photos as they passed by watching us have a good ol’ time. One dad joked, that the only thing missing was the sign saying, “Please don’t feed the Dads, and don’t tap on the glass.”

And what would a Central Park visit be without someone from the media checking in? Another producer asked a few questions and will hopefully do some research to learn what we are all about. Finally, this location was a great place to feed kids and hang out once the music ended.

We need to thank member Joe B. who introduced us to Joanie; we were sorry you couldn’t join us today, Joe. It was the biggest turnout for our NYC Dads Group that I have seen. As Lance said, the best ideas for Meet-Ups come from us — keep the ideas coming, guys.